


.....The Kitten Was Unintentional, It Just Happened.

by Dikhotomia



Series: Whumptober 2k19: FE3H Edition [25]
Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Day 25 Alt Prompt Waterlogged, Gen, I also managed to fit a bit of the original prompt 'humilation' but it's so minor, I swear I'm doing whumptober but I wrote fluff instead of feels, Oops, The one where Ingrid and Edelgard accidently adopt a kitten
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-03 09:56:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21177512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dikhotomia/pseuds/Dikhotomia
Summary: ""It's humiliating, Sylvain!" she hears as she crosses into the dining hall, stopping by the door to watch the same thing that has everyone else there enthralled."You don't remotely understand what it's like do you? Having to apologize for you every time you upset someone?" Ingrid is nearly in Sylvain's face, her frustration evident in the color of her cheeks and the rising cadence of her voice, that try as Sylvain might, he can't get her to lower. The context of the not quite argument is not one she's familiar with beyond rumors, and a dim awareness of the young man's 'particular habits' as Hubert had put it."OREdelgard didn't expect to come to care for a kitten, let alone with Ingrid's help.





	.....The Kitten Was Unintentional, It Just Happened.

She sees the kitten a week before the verdant rain moon, a flash of white and black scurrying between the footfalls of hurrying villagers and knights and students as they prepared for the soaking rain next month would bring. She hopes, as she's swept up by the tide of people, that it had a place to hide and it had braved the chaos to find something to eat in the break between the rain. She hopes that it has a family and simply wandered a little too far and got temporarily lost.

She hopes, because it's all she can do, threading through the crowd with a purpose finally as she rejoins the students making their way back to the monastery.  
It's just as hectic there, the flurry of groundskeepers and staff doing their own preparations forces her to continue her dance between the eb and flow of people with a practice born of someone used to the mess. It's like this every year, the beginning of the rainy season inspiring a rush she found both amazing and irritating. But that was life in Fódlan, everything and everyone constantly in motion, so rarely taking time to just stop and enjoy the world.

She was much the same, and she relished in the times she did get to just stop and watch.

"It's humiliating, Sylvain!" she hears as she crosses into the dining hall, stopping by the door to watch the same thing that has everyone else there enthralled.

"You don't remotely understand what it's like do you? Having to apologize for you every time you upset someone?" Ingrid is nearly in Sylvain's face, her frustration evident in the color of her cheeks and the rising cadence of her voice, that try as Sylvain might, he can't get her to lower. The context of the not quite argument is not one she's familiar with beyond rumors, and a dim awareness of the young man's 'particular habits' as Hubert had put it.

"Look, I'm sorry okay?" Sylvain mumbles, casting a nervous glance around at the audience they've acquired, his eyes locking on where she still stands by the door, still holding the satchel of spices the cooks had asked her for when she came through earlier that day, notice in hand. He looks away as her eyebrows slowly creep up to her hairline, bemused to say the least.

Ingrid's sigh is palatable, years of exasperation and worry being shoved into such a simple sound. "Don't apologize to _me_, Sylvain," she says, hands on her hips. "Maybe apologize to all the people you've hurt."

She's distracted momentarily but other students coming in behind her, so she makes her way over to the counter, sliding around the line to hand the satchel over the counter to the waiting cook.

"That's uh, that's a tall order." She hears Sylvain reply over the cook's muted 'thank you' and she gets out of the way after that, leaning against a pillar to wait. Both for the not argument to die down and for the activity in the dining hall to start up again so she can capitalize on the work she put in to getting those spices.

"Well then," Ingrid starts, finger leveled at his chest. "Maybe drop your habits before you get hurt." She sounds like someone who knows what she says is futile, but says it anyway  ad nauseam in the hopes that one day it'll stick.

Edelgard is pretty sure this isn't going to be the day, then wonders if any day is going to be the day.

(She both wants to know the story and doesn't, the rumors having been enough to keep her interactions with Sylvain brief and professional.)

"I've gotten hurt plenty," he replies, flippant as ever. "But I'll try to be more careful, okay? So can we maybe stop being today's dinner entertainment?"

This time it's Ingrid who looks, the silence of the hall having finally broken through her justified anger. Her frustrated flush quickly turns to one of sheepish embarrassment, hand running over her hair to rub at the back of her neck. "Right." Their eyes meet as she speaks, and Edelgard offers her a small look of sympathy, something easily missed by anyone not paying close enough attention.

She turns away after that, the dull roar of evening conversation winding up slowly from table to table, and she slips into line before it gets any longer. She joins the few of her classmates once she acquires her food, ignoring their chatter about what had happened. The rest of the filter in as she eats, getting their own food and eventually filling the table with a familiarity Edelgard finds great comfort in it.

It starts to rain just as she finishes, pausing in the middle of gathering her empty plate and glass to watch the way the clouds roil in the darkening sky. She thinks briefly of that kitten, while crossing back to the counter and adding her plate to the pile.

She makes it back to her room without further incident.

\------

The second time she sees the kitten is on the monastery grounds in the presence of a familiar face. Ingrid is as soaked as the poor kitten is waterlogged, both shivering as the other woman struggles to convince the poor thing to come out of where it's hidden itself between lumber drenched through from the pouring rain. "Lady Edelgard," Hubert says from behind her, hand resting on her shoulder. "I would strongly advise against you going out into the rain to help. No need to catch a cold."

She glances over her shoulder at him, frowning. "I think my catching a cold is the least of our worries," she says, a little curter then she intends. "If anyone is it'll be Ingrid, she looks like she's been out here awhile and I don't see any of her classmates helping her."

"Probably because none of them wish to share the same fate."

With a roll of her eyes she braves the rain, grimacing as the rain takes great joy in soaking her own uniform through. The chill setting in amid the humidity clogging the air. When she looks back Hubert is gone, and she knows without a doubt he went to go prepare tea, a fire, dry clothes and the towels needed to dry her.

Silently, she thanks him, flicking her cloak away from her body then using it to shield Ingrid from the worst of the rain. It's about as effective as she believed it would be, the sopping fabric merrily drizzling water from various parts, but it does the job well enough.

"Dimitri," Ingrid starts, not realizing who it is whose behind her. "Dudue is going to have a fit if you--oh!" The other woman looks up at her, blinking owlishly through her surprise. "Lady Edelgard! I-what are you doing here?"

She squints against the water running in her eyes, dripping in rivulets off her chin and her nose. She's amazed how quickly it had plastered her hair to her skull and her neck, how quickly her uniform would become a nightmare to remove. But she made her choice, and would live through the consequences for it. "I didn't want to just leave you out here alone," she explains, eyes flicking from Ingrid's to the kitten still huddled just out of the other's reach. "It isn't the first time I've seen this little one," she adds. "I saw him on our free day last week when I was in town."

Ingrid's cheeks color, eyes averting back to the kitten that holds both of their attention. Edelgard's awareness of where the other girl's mind went isn't something she brings up, the incident having been filed away and left in the mental box she kept those particular things in.

She doesn't bring it up, Ingrid doesn't either.

"I guess he made his way up here from the village," Ingrid says after a pause, hand extended again, fingers relaxed. "I think he hurt his leg. I was hoping to get him to come to me so I could see...but he's shy."

"We may have to catch him," Edelgard comments, futilely wringing the worst of the water out of her cape when it becomes too soaked to be of use. "If you stay there I can try and chase him out." Ingrid nods once and she circles around the pile of lumber, being mindful of the kitten's possible injury. She's careful as she moves piece after piece, reaching down into the opening she creates until she feels something move underneath her fingers.

Her attempt to grab it misses, and she looks out of the corner of her eye in time to see Ingrid scoop the kitten up, holding him close to her chest and talking quietly to him.

(Was it even a him?)

The kitten is a fussy little thing, hissing and spitting and wriggling around in Ingrid's grip. The girl flinches when claws hit skin and Edelgard moves to her aid, holding her hands out for the agitated little ball of waterlogged fur. "Here, let me," she offers, her gloves protecting her from teeth and claws as Ingrid deposits the kitten carefully into her hold. "Let's get him inside and dry."

"Us too," Ingrid replies, rubbing her thumb back and forth across the kitten's head.

They both rush back into the safety of the covered walkways, laughing a little at themselves and each other for their impulsiveness. They talk little as they pick their way through the hallways, careful not to drip water on carpets and exchanging glances at the mud they track through.

"Cyril is going to be unhappy," Ingrid comments as she inches her way alongside the carpet that lines the center of the second floor dormitory hallway. "So is everyone else whose responsible for cleaning this place. We're going to get in so much trouble."

"I'm certain we're not the only ones tracking in mud and water from outside," Edelgard rebuffs, kitten now cradled in the bed of one of her elbows. "besides, I think we had a good reason for it," she adds, hand on the doorknob to her room.

Both pause, silence settling between them that's interrupted only by the rain hissing against the windowpanes. It's a silence that stems from neither of them knowing how to proceed, who it is who should take the kitten back to their room, or if she should just invite Ingrid inside-

The kitten sneezes and the spell breaks. "Let me get a towel," Edelgard murmurs, twisting the knob and entering her room. She leaves the door ajar and isn't surprised to see exactly what she expected, breathing in wood-smoke and bergamot tea. She crosses to the table and lifts one of the towels sitting there, carefully wrapping the kitten up in it, then returning to where Ingrid lingers in the doorway.

"Here," she says, holding the bundle out to the other girl. Ingrid hesitates, looking from the bundle back up to meet Edelgard's eyes.

"Go put on a dry uniform at least." She adds when the silence stretches again, bundle withdrawn and in the middle of trying to dry the kitten off and get him warm. "Then come back...I have tea, if you'd like some."

"I..uh, yea. I'll be back." Ingrid disappears down the hallway and Edelgard shuts her door, making her way back into the room. She keeps at it until the kitten is as dry as she can get him, then she sets him down on the carpet in front of the fire and sets about fetching a clean towel and a dry uniform.

She's still trying to dry her hair when Ingrid returns, the kitten having decided being by the fire was better then finding another place to hide in her room. He's curled as close as he can get without being in any real danger, watching her from underneath his tail.

She smiles at him, then picks her way back to the door and opens it.

"How is he?" Ingrid asks, dry and looking a lot warmer than she had.

"Decided he liked the idea of a warm fire," she replies, standing aside. "Come in."

The other girl does, slow and unsure, casting a glance around at the various things she has laying around. The axes on the counter at the back of the room, the scattering of books and papers on her desk. Her space is an organized chaos, but the floor is immaculate. She shuts the door behind her, making her way to the table to pour two cups of tea kept warm by the fireplace.

Ingrid watches the kitten, bending down a little ways from him to get a better look. She watches from her spot as Ingrid extends her hand again, fingers (a few now bandaged) held loose and as nonthreatening as possible. It's a near picture perfect recreation of earlier, but this time the kitten leans over, sniffing her fingers, then rubbing his head against them.

Edelgard sets the teapot down, gingerly cradling her own cup in her hands.

"Can I take a look at your leg?" Ingrid asks, voice gentle as she scoots a little closer. The kitten watches her, but otherwise doesn't make any move to run, letting Ingrid pet him with one hand while she looks his legs over with the other. Moving each with gentle fingers. "Nothing major," she whispers, shoulders relaxing. "I can only hope now he doesn't catch a cold."

Slowly the other girl rises back to her feet and joins Edelgard at the table, gratefully picking up the tea waiting for her. "Thank you, Edelgard," she says after a small sip, peering at her over the rim of the cup. "Thank you so much, for all of this."

"You're welcome," she replies between sips of her own. "But it begs the question, how are we going to care for him and go to classes?"

"I didn't...really think about that, I was so worried about getting him out of the rain. I guess we can take turns watching after him?"

It would be a lie if she admitted she wasn't invested in making sure the kitten grew up healthy and joined the already countless amount of cats that lived in and around the monastery. "Alright, I'm sure we can make it work somehow."

\----

They both catch colds for their efforts.

(Both of them believe it was worth it.)


End file.
